The 'King of Bollywood ', Shah Rukh Khan needs no introduction. From giving several hits over the year to touching millions of hearts across the world, SRK is known not just for his films but also for his charisma. As 'Kind Khan' turns a year older today, here we share an exclusive excerpt from his latest biography aptly titled 'Shah Rukh Khan' by entertainment journalist Mohar Basu . Published by HarperCollins India , the book covers different aspects of SRK's film journey over the years, with first hand accounts giving a distinct facet of SRK’s personality and influence on individuals and the community. In this particular excerpt, the author explores how Shah Rukh Khan's unique approach to Devdas made it a huge hit and what was the actor's thought behind the iconic role. Read:
Bhansali first took the film to Shah Rukh after Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani had been released. Over the years, Shah Rukh had become the nation’s poster boy for young love. Somewhere he had got himself stuck in the Rahul–Raj mould. His films and roles were beginning to feel similar, often blending into one another. The great thing was that it was working. The bad thing also was that it was working.
Why change what’s not broken?
Shah Rukh’s attempts to break away from this romantic image with PBDHH and One 2 Ka 4 had been unsuccessful. Up until Bhansali’s offer, Shah Rukh had neither done a period film nor attempted a character as tormented as Devdas. Initially, he wasn’t particularly enthusiastic. But Bhansali, whimsical even then, was sure that he would only make the film if Shah Rukh played the titular role. He continues to do this till date, shelving projects until he is convinced of his cast. We saw it with Inshallah, starring Salman Khan and Alia Bhatt, and Baiju Bawra, with Ranbir Kapoor and Ranveer Singh—if his casting falls through, he abandons the project, at least for the foreseeable future. This was the passion that reeled Shah Rukh in, and he agreed. ‘For me, Devdas is the greatest story ever told, the greatest film ever made,’ he said.
Shah Rukh was enticed by the possessive cruelty of the young man Bhansali saw in Devdas. Though he struggled to connect with Devdas’s self-destructive instincts, Shah Rukh approached the character with a modern perspective—as a man unable to commit. Devdas had the defiance of a petulant child, who would do exactly what he had been asked not to. Shah Rukh aimed to infuse his portrayal of Devdas with what he feels is the quintessential contradiction in a man’s mind. ‘A man is never in love with just one woman. Men are confused about what they want. They desire ownership of a woman, but also grow bored of her,’ he said. Shah Rukh’s Devdas was meaner and more modern than previous versions. His passion had a polished viciousness to it. For him, Devdas became ‘the story of three people who loved each other so very, very much that they hurt each other and themselves’.
Shah Rukh did not even attempt watching Dilip Kumar ’s Devdas before filming. He approached the role with the calm understanding that he was not competing with one of India’s greatest actors. ‘If you are running with Carl Lewis, you are relaxed because you know you won’t beat him. There is no competition,’ he said.
Once the looming expectation of matching up to Dilip Kumar was out of the way, he started having fun. His prep involved a fair amount of drinking. He joked with some journalists, ‘One thing I did—I normally never drink—but for this film, I drank. I tell you, life can be very hard. Imagine, it is two in the morning and I have to drink Bacardi and have Madhuri [Dixit] fawn all over me on one side, while Ash [Rai] is dancing for me on the other. I tell you, life sucks!’
But as soon as he got into character, the laughs dried up. The role and the performance wrung him completely. He didn’t sign anything else immediately. Usually, Shah Rukh likes the relentless pace of his life and work, but he believed Devdas put him in touch with his inner artiste. In an interview, he explained the aftermath of the film. He talked about how Dilip Kumar had also had a similar experience when he did Devdas, to the extent that he had to undergo psychiatric treatment and take more than a year to recover.
Shah Rukh reminisced about the final day of shooting, when he was perched in the branches of a tree, holding Aishwarya Rai ’s hand. He recalled that he continued to hold her hand even after the shot was completed, realizing that he would miss the feeling of sadness that had pervaded his experience for an entire year. He acknowledged that sadness can bring out the best in art, and after wrapping up the film, he took a six-month break to savour the profound emotion of being sad. He explained, ‘It is a very beautiful emotion to be in. We stars live in this bubble where everyone is smiling at you, where everyone loves you. Somehow, you lose touch with real, deep-down sadness. Working on this film put us in touch with that emotion.’
Bhansali first took the film to Shah Rukh after Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani had been released. Over the years, Shah Rukh had become the nation’s poster boy for young love. Somewhere he had got himself stuck in the Rahul–Raj mould. His films and roles were beginning to feel similar, often blending into one another. The great thing was that it was working. The bad thing also was that it was working.
Why change what’s not broken?
Shah Rukh’s attempts to break away from this romantic image with PBDHH and One 2 Ka 4 had been unsuccessful. Up until Bhansali’s offer, Shah Rukh had neither done a period film nor attempted a character as tormented as Devdas. Initially, he wasn’t particularly enthusiastic. But Bhansali, whimsical even then, was sure that he would only make the film if Shah Rukh played the titular role. He continues to do this till date, shelving projects until he is convinced of his cast. We saw it with Inshallah, starring Salman Khan and Alia Bhatt, and Baiju Bawra, with Ranbir Kapoor and Ranveer Singh—if his casting falls through, he abandons the project, at least for the foreseeable future. This was the passion that reeled Shah Rukh in, and he agreed. ‘For me, Devdas is the greatest story ever told, the greatest film ever made,’ he said.
Shah Rukh was enticed by the possessive cruelty of the young man Bhansali saw in Devdas. Though he struggled to connect with Devdas’s self-destructive instincts, Shah Rukh approached the character with a modern perspective—as a man unable to commit. Devdas had the defiance of a petulant child, who would do exactly what he had been asked not to. Shah Rukh aimed to infuse his portrayal of Devdas with what he feels is the quintessential contradiction in a man’s mind. ‘A man is never in love with just one woman. Men are confused about what they want. They desire ownership of a woman, but also grow bored of her,’ he said. Shah Rukh’s Devdas was meaner and more modern than previous versions. His passion had a polished viciousness to it. For him, Devdas became ‘the story of three people who loved each other so very, very much that they hurt each other and themselves’.
Shah Rukh did not even attempt watching Dilip Kumar ’s Devdas before filming. He approached the role with the calm understanding that he was not competing with one of India’s greatest actors. ‘If you are running with Carl Lewis, you are relaxed because you know you won’t beat him. There is no competition,’ he said.
Once the looming expectation of matching up to Dilip Kumar was out of the way, he started having fun. His prep involved a fair amount of drinking. He joked with some journalists, ‘One thing I did—I normally never drink—but for this film, I drank. I tell you, life can be very hard. Imagine, it is two in the morning and I have to drink Bacardi and have Madhuri [Dixit] fawn all over me on one side, while Ash [Rai] is dancing for me on the other. I tell you, life sucks!’
But as soon as he got into character, the laughs dried up. The role and the performance wrung him completely. He didn’t sign anything else immediately. Usually, Shah Rukh likes the relentless pace of his life and work, but he believed Devdas put him in touch with his inner artiste. In an interview, he explained the aftermath of the film. He talked about how Dilip Kumar had also had a similar experience when he did Devdas, to the extent that he had to undergo psychiatric treatment and take more than a year to recover.
Shah Rukh reminisced about the final day of shooting, when he was perched in the branches of a tree, holding Aishwarya Rai ’s hand. He recalled that he continued to hold her hand even after the shot was completed, realizing that he would miss the feeling of sadness that had pervaded his experience for an entire year. He acknowledged that sadness can bring out the best in art, and after wrapping up the film, he took a six-month break to savour the profound emotion of being sad. He explained, ‘It is a very beautiful emotion to be in. We stars live in this bubble where everyone is smiling at you, where everyone loves you. Somehow, you lose touch with real, deep-down sadness. Working on this film put us in touch with that emotion.’
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